Consolidating home entertainment.
I’m intrigued with IPTV because I believe it’s the future; entertainment over the Internet is simply a natural progression of the technology, be it radio, television, or home movies. Ultimately, as the Internet becomes more ubiquitous thanks to extended wireless ranges, all of our entertainment can be consolidated through Internet service providers. At first, companies like AT&T will deliver television along with basic Internet service, but some years down the road, our cars, cell phones, and other devices will always be connnected to the Internet, where they can receive entertainment from a variety of sources, in much the way we do today on our desktops. This service-based entertainment industry will evolve from the iTunes of today into one-stop services that reach across our desktops, to our vehicles, to our portable devices.
Today, however, we focus on the next logical step, which is basic IPTV service. While companies like Comcast intend to push voice service over existing lines, the technology itself is outdated; with faster fiber-based solutions, VOIP will ultimately win the battle over how we make our telephone calls, and the forseeable future will likely see cellular phones utilizing VOIP solutions beside traditional coverage, until ultimately, the former becomes the only platform necessary.
This could very well mean that existing fiber companies like AT&T will slowly build regional monopolies until cable providers are pushed to the wayside. Chances are, the future will be more about companies leasing lines (like most DSL companies do today) and offering their own IPTV solutions, in order to compete with the likes of AT&T and Verizon. Until then, however, we have some interesting options that are popping up, and AT&T’s new IPTV solution makes for great competition to cable and satellite companies alike. For one, AT&T’s IPTV will offer the opportunity to record up to four stations at once, as well as receiving video-on-demand. Bundled with voice and basic internet service, it will be exciting to watch the growth of this new competitor compared to the services of current television providers.
With the announcement of the new Zephyr XBox 360 and its ability to act as a DVR for IPTV, it also begs the question as to what sort of DVR interface Microsoft can cook up. If IPTV becomes adopted quickly, it will only leverage Microsoft into a better position against Sony on the console front, and Apple on the home entertainment front. The only problem with Microsoft’s Zephyr is the already widespread presence of the Xbox 360, as most existing 360 owners won’t be giving up their old consoles for HDMI and a larger hard drive. Of course, according to Gates, IPTV won’t require typical DVR storage, since the high bandwidth associated with it will allow for on-demand streaming.
Suffice to say, between what IPTV claims to offer, its competitive price, and HDMI on the Zephyr XBox 360, I anticipate a total overhaul of my home entertainment by years end. Assuming, of course, IPTV is ripe and available by then.
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I agree with everything WyldKard said, but need to make one clarification. The Zephyr is essentially the current Xbox 360, black in color, with a larger hard drive, a more power efficient processor, a quieter DVD drive, and HDMI output. The IPTV fuctionality of Xbox Live will be available on both the existing Xbox 360s and Zephyr, just Zephyr will have more storage space for the downloaded media. The larger hard drive that will come with Zephyr will be compatible with the current generation Xbox 360 (Xbox 360 hard drives are removable) and be available for separate purchase. Thus no 360 owners will be left in the cold when IPTV hits. The only thing that may stop folks is the rumored IPTV requirement for fiber optic internet access (DSL just not fast enough). We will likely learn more when the specifics on the service are announced this summer.